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Enterprise Ads Are 'Major Shift' In Strategy

Enterprise-B.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car is launching a marketing campaign which is a "major shift" in the company's ad strategy, according to company executives.

The campaign moves beyond value and convenience to tell the broader story behind the brand and make an emotional connection with consumers.

Two 30-second TV spots break Feb. 28 and will air during coverage of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. Four more 30-second spots will be added to the rotation and all six will air over the next year.

Creative continues the "We'll pick you up" tagline which the company has used since its first national TV ad campaign in 1989. The spots feature real employees and focus on the brand's entrepreneurial culture of customer service and its heritage and values as a family-owned business. Enterprise Rent-A-Car is operated through the regional subsidiaries of St. Louis-based Enterprise Holdings, which is now in its third generation of ownership by the Taylor family.

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In the past, employees have been shown picking customers up or opening doors for customers, said Patrick Farrell, vice president of marketing and communications for Enterprise Holdings. "This is our first campaign featuring our employees as speaking talent," Farrell tells Marketing Daily.

Research over the past several years has shows that customers believe Enterprise's employees are what differentiate the company in the marketplace.

"We knew we needed to use our employees but, as you can imagine, were cautiously optimistic that our employees' enthusiasm and professionalism would come through on camera as well as it does in person," Farrell says. "When we did our casting call in Los Angeles, it only took a few auditions to convince us that this approach would work. Our employees were as professional and genuine as they are when you visit our branch. That really came across on camera."

The company also discovered via consumer research that customers get excited when they learn things about Enterprise that they didn't know -- like the brand's 55-year heritage as part of a family-owned business, the priority placed on customer service, the promote-from-within culture, and the fact that employees are empowered to make decisions on the spot to take care of our customers.

"This research showed us that we could add a new dimension to our brand if we started telling this side of our story," Farrell says. "We saw an opportunity to build on the strengths of the existing campaign and capitalize on the opportunity to deepen understanding about our brand and really shape the conversation about Enterprise."

The campaign will be integrated throughout the brand's social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter, FlickR and YouTube. The online buy also includes pre-roll ads as well as companion banners in support of new messaging on nbc.com, cbs.com, hulu, cbssports.com and espn.com. The campaign was developed by Cannonball Advertising and Promotion. PHD Media Network is executing the media buy.

With more than 6,000 neighborhood and airport locations and more than 60,000 employees, the brand's appeal and target audience is wide and varied, Farrell says.

"The common denominator for the brand is that it is highly appealing to consumers who prefer/demand a high level of hands-on customer service and attentiveness," he says. "Another audience that we hope to reach, though it is not our primary goal, is potential employees. We certainly hope this campaign will attract smart, hard-working, responsible and articulate individuals to our company."

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